Judicial Panel Merges NSA Spying Suits

A judicial panel ruled Thursday that the 13 class-action lawsuits filed against telephone companies over the NSA spying program would be consolidated into a single suit. Judge Vaughn Walker of the Northern District of California will preside over the newly combined case.

The Northern District of California was selected due to the fact that the first suit was filed there, and "more advanced action is pending." Additionally, Walker has studied the issue thoroughly and understands the issues brought in the case, the panel said.

Walker's court had already dismissed a motion by the government and AT&T to dismiss one lawsuit. However, he agreed to stay the trial pending appeal, and also to wait for a decision from the panel. It is not clear if the stay would continue to apply to the combined case.

The NSA spying program was first revealed in December in an article by USA Today. At the time, it was reported that the agency worked with the telcos to tap directly into switches and monitor any traffic moving across the networks. This included e-mail, instant messages and even phone calls.

The legality of the project is in question. While the Bush administration asserts that it was essential to fighting terrorism, privacy groups slammed the program as unconstitutional and a breach of privacy.

Representatives for the Justice Department, as well as AT&T, BellSouth, and Verizon all declined to comment.